Wordless Wednesday - Derby Time Capsule

A time capsule from 1915 was opened on Friday at the Derby CT Elks. A great look at life a century ago was unearthed! Patti was there and besides getting pictures, wrote a unique story...see NC Sue

Ruby Tuesday Too - Christmas Rubies, 1964

For Ruby Tuesday Too, where red is showcased, I recently scanned this print from Christmas Eve 1964. It is all seven Villers children in our at our East Hartford Connecticut.  Aside from the degraded print offering a reddish hue overall, there are wrapped presents in red paper, the padded railing on the playpen, red lights on the tree and sister Suzanne in her red nightwear.  Plenty of ruby red accents here!

SOOC - Grand Opening

Straight out of he Camera - SOOC takes us this week across the Housatonic River to a new restaurant, GROW, a farm-to-table eatery in Shelton, CT. This eatery grew from the ashes of the downtown fixture (since 2004) Liquid Lunch, damaged in a fire last year. 

The restaurant will support local farms (Stone Gardens Farm, Beardsley Orchard, Jones Family Farm, and Farmers Cow Dairy) in its retro cool and stylish interior. Need another visit!

Shadow Shot Sunday - Giving Thanks (and Giving)

Wordless Wednesday - Resort Relaxin'

Our software developer son decided to spend five days in Cancun, a long deserved vacation in a warm place. His phone pics show a very relaxed guy standing around Yucatan ruins - and a hotel dwelling peacock. Looks like a vacation and a lot warmer than here...see NC Sue for more wordless captures

Ruby Tuesday Too - Today's Spectacular Sunset

Ruby Tuesday Too allows us to locate and post that arresting color red. Although it was a gray day, the clouds broke just before sunset, and the dappled gray sky allowed the residual moisture to add its prism drops into a fiery ruby sky. The always lovely Patti saw this spectacular sight in our back yard and captured this stunning way to end the day...

Shadow Shot Sunday - Autumnal Scenes

The sights of Autumn are lovely, although the sky is grayer, the temps colder - but the colors on the Derby CT green were pretty lively two weeks ago. The church is the Second Congregational Church of Derby, whose peaked steeple was toppled during Hurricane Gloria in 1985. The small-town scene contains a shadow or two, and we look at the red and gold foliage knowing that is no more on the trees. Nice views while they lasted...

Watery Songlines - Humble Headwaters

This week's Watery Songlines takes us back to August 1983, and the headwaters of the long (2340 miles/3770 km) Mighty Mississippi River at Lake Itasca State Park Minnesota. At 2552 miles/4110 km in length, it is hard to believe one can even cross it by foot - not likely in say St. Louis, but here anyone can. And that is me at ankle depth in my walking days, and for those who are unaware, there is a large stone marker to show the beginnings. Minnesota is a beautiful state full of calm waters like here at Itasca...

Wordless Wednesday - Beach Babies

The kids are grown these days, but they were younger once. Such as a family vacation at Nauset Beach in Orleans on Cape Cod, August 2001. With mom Patti, the feeling of togetherness and love are readily apparent...see NC Sue at WW

SOOC - Allied Solidarity

For Straight out of the Camera - SOOC, we have to acknowledge that the news is not always good, evil exists as we know. Paris is a beautiful city I am told,  and Patti and Allegra have many a picture to prove just that. From an April 2005 school trip, the took this wonderful capture of a Statue of Liberty on Île aux Cygnes with the iconic Eiffel Tower just upriver on the Seine. Solidarity, friendship, allied - this is what I see on a lovely Spring day a decade ago...

Shadow Shot Sunday - Iconic Paris

We know that the world can be bad place - witness the events in Paris. Given the bad in the capitol city of France, there is beauty too. So for today's Shadow Shot Sunday 2, I showcase a picture of the famous Eiffel Tower / Tour Eiffel that was captured by Patti (with Allegra) when on a school trip there in 2004. The lighting underneath the intricate wrought iron structure throws equally intricate shadows all around. Lovely shadows from a historic icon...

Ruby Tuesday Too - Giveback

Giving is what we look forward to, especially for those who serve the nation and whose needs are not always met. Thus for Ruby Tuesday Too, we are looking at the "Mission: Give Back" event on October 31 at Nolan Field in Ansonia. Lots of red from the flag to the volunteers...

U.S. Army veteran Adam J. Avenia and Alyssa Antonucci with volunteers and the American Legion Post 50 in Ansonia all joined together to make this event happen.

Antonucci notes: “When he was away it was eye-opening. There are so many things (that happen) that the average American doesn’t realize.” Antonucci said. The troops didn’t receive breakfast and the bases didn’t have heat in the cold weather.

So Antonucci sent Avenia boxes of food, blankets, socks, and more when he was deployed. Thus the idea was formed. “They should have everything they need.” Red white and blue abound here!

SOOC - Bomba Farm

Autumn in New England can be pretty, so for Straight Out of the Camera - SOOC, we are at the over 100-year-old Bomba Farm in nearby Seymour. Two views stand out: On the top, this farm is on the Great Hill, high enough to see Long Island Sound and New York's Long Island over some of the Fall foliage; and, the barn and dairy cows on the rocky and hilly New England landscape. Pastoral autumnal views abound...

Shadow Shot Sunday - Barnyard Shadows

Shadow Shot Sunday 2 is back, and I offer country farm shadows from Bomba's Farm in Seymour CT. We live in a suburban/urban small city, but here 'country' means a mere 15 minute drive from home. This over 100-year-old farm offers not only an autumnal look at the past, but also at a working farm in an era where fewer and fewer of these are still around...

Watery Songlines - The Land of Blue Waters

To me, the magic of water seems alive in Minnesota, the Land of Blue Waters. Thus for Watery Songlines, I showcase a picture taken in August 1983 from Big Stony Lake, a four-hour drive northwest of the Twin Cities. This is an early morning view of this state's typically beautiful lake in Minnesota - the water is so clear it acts as a blue mirror to the heavens. But do go in the summer,as the Winter is very cold...

Wordless Wednesday - Thrift Shop / Food Bank

The needs of the community are met by many a non-profit - so the expanded St. Vincent de Paul Helping Hands of the Valley in Derby CT is there to help. The classy interior decor makes this a place that is fun to shop too...see NC Sue at WW

Ruby Tuesday Too - School Crossing

For the fun meme Ruby Tuesday Too, I am offering a prosaic look at daily life in the nearby town of Derby CT. It is near the end of the school day at the Irving elementary School , the reds we see on this showery day are the STOP sign held by the crossing guard, the stop lights on the school bus and the United States flag in front of the Derby Public Library. These are not precious ruby gems, but the gems we see all over our daily lives...